FSSAI orders recall of Everest cumin powder batch

India’s Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) has ordered Everest Food Products to immediately recall the entire implicated batch of its prepacked cumin powder after two rounds of testing found pesticide residues above prescribed limits, the regulator said. The order requires the company to keep records of the recalled product, submit reports and take corrective measures. FSSAI said a regulatory sample was collected from the premises of Riverside Resorts Holiday Homes in Goa. A Food Analyst found residues of Azoxystrobin and Thiamethoxam above the maximum limits and declared the sample unsafe under the Food Safety and Standards Act, 2006. Everest Food Products was given an opportunity to challenge the initial result. After the company appealed, the sample was examined by a Referral Food Laboratory, which confirmed the presence of both pesticides above the prescribed limits, according to FSSAI. The regulator then directed the recall of the entire implicated batch. The sources do not identify the batch number, the quantity involved or how widely the product was distributed.